Account for the outbreak of war between Japan and the West in 1941
In 1941 Japan had approximately a tenth of the United States’ industrial strength. Many question whether the decision to launch an attack on Pearl Harbor in this year, an attack that would unquestionably ignite all out war with the States, was an act of insanity. Patrick J. Buchanan, founder of The American Cause an American educational organisation, suggests that this decision was because, most simply put, ’the Japanese were desperate’. Having been lucky enough to visit Pearl Harbor in 2005, I believe the notorious words spoken by Franklin. D. Roosevelt at the time declaring that 7th Dec 1941 would be a ‘date which will live in infamy’, to be more relevant than he knew at the time. Many who are unfamiliar with the background to this event, may be able to offer the suggestion that Japan had insufficient oil, that the Japanese were brutally aggressive and attacked the United States without fore thinking or they may have a vague notion that America gave the Japanese no alternative. In hindsight, it seems inevitable that Japan would be at full-scale war with the West at some stage and this essay aims to account for the outbreak of war in 1941 by discussing the events leading up to the ultimate attack on Pearl Harbor and discussing the influences which led to the outbreak.
The British government faced a dilemma in the 1930s, as Germany was not the only naval threat to her. Japan’s rapid expansion was gathering speed at a swift rate. Japanese expansion threatened British power in Chinese, Hong Kong and potentially later in Australia and New Zealand . In some ways, Japan mirrored the decisions and actions of Hitler in Germany who had an unappeasable desire for territory, which unquestionably gave reason for concern in the West. That is to say, both countries seemed to share an insatiable appetite for land. Japan’s strength was established following victories in the Sino-Japanese War (1894-5)...